Bistro Chloe Elan will open in Ada after plans to locate in Bridgewater Place fall through

Matt Gade | MLive.comChristine Gill, former co-owner of the Sierra Room and Opus 1894 in Grand Rapids, will open Bistro Chloe Elan in Ada this summer after plans for the upscale restaurant fell though in Grand Rapids.

ADA, MI — Former Sierra Room co-owner Christine Gill is moving forward with plans to open the upscale restaurant that she announced was in the works last fall, but the new establishment will launch in Ada, not Grand Rapids.

Gill is opening Bistro Chloe Elan in the former Thornapple Village Inn space on Ada Drive SE after being unable to strike a deal with the Berkadia Group of Texas, receivership owners of Bridgewater Place in Grand Rapids.

She originally intended to open Chloe Elan in a former office and bank branch space on the first floor of the blue glass office tower overlooking downtown, but six months of negotiations, a 70-page proposed lease and other long-term landlord restrictions amounted to too much of a financial burden, she said.

David Weiner, a Colliers International agent handling leasing at Bridgewater, said the office tower, which went into foreclosure and is listed for sale, is still about 85 percent leased.

Gill began looking for alternative locations for Chloe Elan about two months ago.

“I was willing to put in quite a bit of startup funding, but as owners of the building, they need to put in their share as well,” she said. “When it came right down to it, it just wasn’t happening.”

Instead, Gill struck a deal with landlord Joe Martin to open Bistro Chloe Elan in Ada by late July, and she’s actively eyeing a sister location in the Heartside district downtown, which could open by the end of the year.

“It’s gone very well,” she said. Martin is renovating the former Gilmore Collection restaurant location ahead of this summer’s opening. “We’re pushing it, but I’m optimistic.”

Bistro Chloe Elan will feature the same “new American” style cuisine that she planned for the Bridgewater location, described then as “the melting pot of America with other influences brought into the mix, such as Asian, southwestern and French influences.” Executive chef will be Peter Setterington. Gill will be the sole owner.

Matt Gade | MLive.comThe former Thornapple Village Inn on Ada Drive SE will become Bistro Chloe Elan this summer. The former Gilmore Collection restaurant closed in 2010.

However, reflecting the suburban setting, the menu will also feature some more traditional items like burgers and sandwiches. “Something for adventurous as well as traditional diners,” she said.

Her liquor license transfer was approved last month by the Ada Township Board. State approval is pending.

The restaurant would be open Monday through Friday for lunch and dinner, Saturday for dinner only, and Sunday for brunch, lunch, and dinner. Average meal prices would be $15 for lunch and $25 for dinner.

The restaurant would feature an outdoor deck seating area as well as private party room with capacity for 50 people.

Gill is hoping to pull in affluent customers from the Northeast Grand Rapids, Forest Hills, and Cascade communities, which she said made up a large part of her clientele at Opus 1894 and the Sierra Room, which she sold her interest in before the establishment closed in 2007.

“There’s just not a lot of choices out there besides your typical chain places on 28th Street and the East Beltline,” she said.

I've always had a special place in my heart for Ada and truly appreciate the sense of the close knit community I feel whenever visiting the town.”